Storage cabinet



Aug. 30, 1966 L. D. oRsER 3,269,589

STORAGE CABINET Filed March 6, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet l i l Q NN l?? 1N V EN TOR. LAWRENCE D. ORSE R AT1-o2 NEY Aug. 30, 1966 l.. D. oRsr-:R 3,269,589

STORAGE CABINET Filed March 6, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. 78 LAWRENCE D. ORSER 1 ron NEY' Aug. 30, 1966 l.. D. oRsER v 3,269,589

STORAGE CABINET Filed March 6, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR LAWRENCE D. ORSER #www ATTORNE'Y United States Patent O 3,269,589 STORAGE CABINET Lawrence D. Orser, Cedar Falls, Iowa, assignor to Lincoln Manufacturing Company, Inc., Fort Wayne, Ind., a corporation of Indiana Filed Mar. 6, 1964, Ser. No. 349,910 4 Claims. (Cl. 220-93) This invention relates to an improved storage cabinet which is especially adapted for storing food stuffs, including beverages and the like, and other material such as plates which should be provided at suitable level for removing from the compartment as the need arises.

In the process of dispensing food stuffs it is a common practice to provide an insulated storage compartment having the food stulfs in the form of cartons of milk, prepared lunches which it is desired to store in either a heated or cooled condition. The material is then dispensed from the top of the compartment by reaching through an opening at the top of the compartment. The capacity of the compartment is determined -by the volumetric capacity of the compartment which can have considerable depth, making it highly inconvenient to reach down into the compartment for the material. Accordingly, there has been proposed in the prior art certain spring loaded elevator means which are weight-responsive and are adapted to lower under the weight of the articles stored and to raise upwardly as the weight diminishes and the material is withdrawn, thereby always presenting the material at a more convenient level of greater height within the compartment. The various proposals with which I am familiar generally take the form of columns of coil springs which are compressed or crushed under the load of the material being stored.

In the present invention, there is proposed a new and improved elevator means which is capable of using the full capacity of the storage cabinet by completely -lowering material for storage through the full depth of the compartment so that the lowermost material stored is located at the bottom of the storage cabinet and such elevator means becomes loaded during the addition of material for storage and as such material is removed it causes the entire quantity to be gradually raised, thereby always presenting the uppermost portions of material stored .at a convenient vertical level for accessibility.

One of the foremost objects of the present invention is to provide a new and improved elevator means which incorporates a helical torsion coil spring having one iixed end and with the other end operatively secured to the elevator means so that during lowering the coil spring is wound into tighter coil and thus stores enough energy so that as the weight is relieved the coil spring will relax, and in moving through an uncoiling direction cause the elevator to be raised together with the attached load.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved cage arrangement for such spring so that the coiling and uncoiling movements of the torsion spring will in no way interfere with the vertical raising and lowering movements of the elevator means.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide an improved method for communicating the coil spring force to the elevator means in the form of a exible tape or the like suitably comprised of nylon, steel, or other appropriate material and which is wrapped over a pulley and unwinds from the drum as the elevator is lowered.

An overall object of the present invention is to provide an elevator means which automatically maintains the material stored therein in a suitable vertical level for accessibility and to accomplish this by means of a suitably housed coil torsion spring which is suitably located in non-interfering relation with the elevator means ICS and permits a full use of the storage means throughout its depth.

Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from consideration of the following description which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is an isometric view of the storage cabinet having the invention incorporated therein;

FIGURES 2 and 3 are sectional views taken midway through the storage cabinet of FIGURE 1 and showing, in FIGURE 2 the fully loaded condition of the storage cabinet, and in FIGURE 3 the same storage cabinet while it is only partially loaded;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged isometric detail view showing the elevator means and associated guide structure, and structure for raising and lowering the elevator;

FIGURE 5 is an isometric detail view of the coil torsion spring detached from the structure in FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is Ian enlarged detail view of the central portion of the actuating structure operated by the torsion spring illustrated in FIGURE 5 in actuating the elevator;

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged detail view of the elevator mechanism, viewed from the right hand end of FIGURE 6; and,

FIGURE 8 is a detail View showing the method of securing the end of the tape to the drum or pulley.

Referring now to the drawings, and particularly to FIGURE l, the apparatus is designated generally by reference numeral 10 and includes a cabinet 12 and interior compartment 14 which is accessible through the top opening 16, the interior of the cabinet being loa-ded from the top through opening 16 and unloaded also from the top. The apparatus is mounted on wheels 18 to facilitate the transportation of the apparatus. Perisha-ble food stuff, such as beverages, precooked meals, and other edible as well as inedible material, such as dishes, silverware, etc., can 4be readily stored Within the apparatus 10 and transported to the point of usage, and there unloaded and, similarly, the apparatus can be conveniently pushed to the point of loading, where the food stuffs are initially received. The walls 22 (FIGURES 2 and 3) are suitably insulated so that the material within the compartment 16 is maintained either refrigerated or heated as desired.

Owing to the depth of the compartment 14, it would be very inconvenient to reach ydown to the bottom of the compartment in order to initially load the compartment, as well as withdrawing the last portions of the loaded material, and therefore, provision has been made for automatically lowering and raising the contents within the compartment 14 by means which will next be described.

A tray support 24, located along opposite sides of the storage cabinet is fastened at its opposite ends by means of bolts 26 (FIGURE 4) to slides 28 which are caused to move within slide tracks 30 in the direction of the arrows 32 (FIGURES 4, 6 and 7). The tray support is suspended from a flexible ribbon :or tape 34 of nylon, steel, or other suitable exible material which is capable of winding onto a spool or drum 36. The one end 38 of the tape or ribbon is passed through a slot 40 ,and then clamped to the undersurface 42 of the track slide by a clamp 44 held by screws 46. The opposite end 50, of the tape, has an eyelet which is Vsecured by a pin 52 in a recess 54 `of the spool 36 (FIGURE 8) so that the tape will wind onto the spool or drum as the spool or drum is caused to rotate. The weight of the Icontents Within the compartment 14 is carried by the elevator bracket 24 which in turn is supported by the slide 28, thence to the tape or ribbon Which is secured to the spools. The spool or drum are each carried in turn on the end of 49 of a rotatable tubular member 53, the outer edge 58 of one of the guide ilanges 60 of the spool being recessed at 62 and welded at 64 to the tube 53. The rotatable tubular member 53 passes through a bearing 66 and is journalled in bearing opening 68 for rotatable movement therein. The bearing 66 in turn is supported on a fixed bracket 70 which is suitably fastened to an interior portion of the cabinet. The rotatable member 53 serves as Ia cage housing for the helical torsion spring 74 which is passed through the tubular member 53 and is secured at its end 76 by a fastener 78 to the end 80 of the tubular members 53 (FIGURE 7). The other end 86 of the coil torsion spring 74 is secured by a bolt 88 to the end 92 of the fixed tubular member 94 (FIGURES 4 and 6). The tubular member 94 which also journals the spool 36 is welded at 96 to a bracket 98, and also to a bracket 100, both of the brackets 98, 100 being fastened to the interior of the compartment 14. The spring 74 thus serves as a motor spring, being wound tightly by the downward motion of the elevator as the weight on the elevator is increased, steadily dropping the load farther down into the interior of the compartment so that the uppermost one of the sustained load is at about the level of the opening 16. Conversely, as the weight on the elevator is taken ofi, the action of the motor spring 74 is to uncoil, turning the tubular member 53 and its attached spo-ol or drum 36 and causing the tape 34 to wind onto the rotating spool and raising the elevator so that the uppermost one of the stack of material is maintained at about the vertical level of the opening 16. The rate, size and dimensions of the motor spring are varied in accordance with the size of the apparatus, vand the projected weight of the material which is supported on the elevator, the general rule being the heavier the sustained load, the higher the rate of the spring. In the illustration, the apparatus is used for supporting -a plurality of racks 102 containing cartons 108 of milk which is refrigerated and is maintained at a chilled temperature until used.

The coil spring remains caged within the two tubular members and is relatively free from all contaminants and can be packed within grease or other protective material if desired. Also, since the spring is located at an upper portion of the compartment (FIGURES 2 and 3) and is disposed out of the line of travel of the material being stored, it does not interfere with the capacity of the compartment and is not subject to being disturbed or otherwise injured by the loading and unloading movements within the interior compartment 14.

In operation, the elevator is at the maximum vertical height, such that the support angles 24 (FIGURES 3, 4) are at their maximum height, being at about the level of the opening 16 (FIGURES 1, 3) and the racks 102, which contain a number of cartons 108 of milk, are rested on the angle iron supports of the elevator and this weight is borne by the track slides 28, which are suspended on the -ribbon or tapes 34 wrapped over the drums 36 tending to unwind the drum and tape, together with the tubular member 53, against the resistance of the spring 74 which is caused to coil in a tightening direction. The level of the sustained weight will drop until the coil spring tightening action is sucient to carry the weight of the burden at that level. Continuing loading of successive racks, will cause the elevator to lower under the increasing load, each lowering taking place by coiling more tightly the coil spring 74 which serves as a motor, storing the energy of the spring-tightening action. The equilibrium condition reached in each instance however is such that the uppermost one of the stored racks is maintained at about the level of the opening 16.

After the compartment is fully loaded, the apparatus can be moved to whatever point of consumption is desired on the wheels 18, at which point unloading occurs by lifting out the contents of the uppermost rack, item by item, or the entire uppermost rack and relieving a part of the load on the spring motor 74 which at all times sustains the load. The compartment 14 is of course loaded only to the extent possible by completely filling the entire depth as shown in FIGURE 2, at which time the spring 74 is coiled to its maximum extent. As each of the racks is lifted oi the coil spring motor counter-rotates the tubular member 53 a proportional amount thereby raising the elevator means 24 and maintaining the uppermost one of the stack of racks at about the level of the opening 16 for ready accessibility. At the time that the lowermost rack is removed, the elevator assembly is brought to its maximum height and is thereby again accessible for a reloading operation.

The described action takes place automatically, and insures that during both loading and unloading, the personnel do not have t-o reach to any extensive amount down into the interior of the compartment either to put in or take out any of the material.

The invention described is not, of course, limited to the storage of racks containing milk but is equally useable for racks or other containers having other articles, such as hot foods or cold foods, and for that matter is not limited to food stuff, including such other applications as storing dishes and other material.

Although the present invention has been illustrated and described in connection with a single example embodiment, it Will vbe understood that this is illustrative of the invention and is by no means restrictive thereof. It is reasonably to be expected that those having skill in this art can make numerous revisions and adaptations of the invention, including multiple compartment units, to suit individual design requirements, and it is intended that such revisions and changes will be included within the scope of the following claims as equivalents of the invention.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for storing and serving materials, comprising: a cabinet, a vertically movable tray support for receiving and supporting materials which are stored within the cabinet :and raised for serving as required, guide means one at each of opposite sides of said tray support for dening the vertical movements of said tray support yand including a track having spaced guideways and a slide with bearing sur-faces proportioned to move slidingly within said guideways to provide the vertical movements of said tray support, cage means mounted within the upper portion and on opposite sides of the cabinet, said cage means including a tubular stationary member and a rotatable tubular member, resilient means mounted within said tubular me-mbers and connected at the outer end of the stationary member Iand the outer end of the rotatable member, a pulley operatively driven Iand carried by said rotatable member, bearing means for supporting said rotatable member within the cabinet, and elongated force transmitting means connected between said pulley and tray support for raising and lowering the tray support.

2. The apparatus in accordance with claim 1 wherein said elongated force transmitting means is in the form of a tape or ribbon which is passed over said pulley and wound thereon by said cage means to effect raising and lowering of the tray support.

3. The apparatus in .accordance with claim 1 wherein said elongated force transmitting means is in the -form of a tape or ribbon which is passed over said pulley and wound thereon by said cage means to effect raising and lowering of the tray support, and clamping means for attaching the other end of said ribbon to said tray support. i

4. The apparatus in accordance with claim 1 wherein said elongated force transmitting means is in the form of a tape or ribbon which is passed over said pulley and wound thereon by said cage means to elect raising and lowering of the tray suppo1tand clamping means for attaching the other end of said ribbon to said tray support, said tape being passed through the clamping means and thereafter clamped to provide whatever tape length is needed for a given extent of movement of said tray support.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED 6 Seyter et al 312-312 Palmer 312-306 Pemberton 211--1 Holloway et a1 312-71 Bronson 211-49 THERON E. CONDON, Primary Examiner.

R. H. SCHWARTZ, Assistant Examiner. 

1. APPARATUS FOR STORING AND SERVING MATERIALS, COMPRISING: A CABINET, A VERTICALLY MOVABLE TRAY SUPPORT FOR RECEIVING AND SUPPORTING MATERIALS WHICH ARE STORED WITHIN THE CABINET AND RAISED FOR SERVING AS REQUIRED, GUIDE MEANS ONE AT EACH OF OPPOSITE SIDES OF SAID TRAY SUPPORT FOR DEFINING THE VERTICAL MOVEMENTS OF SAID TRAY SUPPORT AND INCLUDING A TRACK HAVING SPACED GUIDEWAYS AND A SLIDE WITH BEARING SURFACES PROPORTIONED TO MOVE SLIDINGLY WITHIN SAID GUIDEWAYS TO PROVIDE THE VERTICAL MOVEMENTS OF SAID TRAY SUPPORT, CAGE MEANS MOUNTED WITHIN THE UPPER PORTION AND ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE CABINET, SAID CAGE MEANS INCLUDING A TUBULAR STATIONARY MEMBER AND A ROTATBLE TUBULAR MEMBER, RESILIENT MEANS MOUNTED WITHIN SAID TUBULAR MEMBERS AND CONNECTED AT THE OUTER END OF THE STATIONARY MEMBER AND THE OUTER END OF THE ROTATABLE MEMBER, A PULLEY OPERATIVELY DRIVEN AND CARRIED BY SAID ROTATABLE MEMBER, BEARING MEANS FOR SUPPORTING SAID ROTATABLE MEMBER WITHIN THE CABINET, AND ELONGATED FORCE TRANSMITTING MEANS CONNECTED BETWEEN SAID PULLEY AND TRAY SUPPORT FOR RAISING AND LOWERING THE TRAY SUPPORT. 